'I've figured out the most important thing to me' Blake Lively opens up about baby James and breastfeeding

She kept her pregnancy under wraps for seven months and was reluctant to reveal even the name of her daughter, but Blake Lively has decided to open up about life as a working mum, saying, "I feel like I've figured out the most important thing to me, and everything supports that."

Blake, 27, gave birth in December to a baby girl, but husband Ryan Reynolds only revealed their unusual choice of name in March, saying: "It's James, everyone knows. It's just before it was out there I didn't want to be the first guy screaming it out to the media".

The actress was photographed by Mario Testino for the May edition of Allure magazine, and in an accompanying interview thought to have taken place in January, described breastfeeding as a "full-time job", joking: "I’m, like, driving down the road, pumping."

And she also discussed why she waited until seven months to announce the pregnancy, which she did with a post on her website about throwing a party for expectant mums, herself included - previously having managed to avoid attention by wearing baggy clothes.

"That was my way of owning that moment," the star explained. "I can't be someone like Beyoncé and be like [mimes throwing open a jacket as pregnant Beyoncé did onstage in 2011]. But it was important for us. It was a struggle, because we want to keep our privacy, but we also don't want our lives to be exploited by other people. So we did it simply; it was a quiet way, an elegant way."

Blake revealed her pregnancy by posting this shot on her website

On why they chose to keep the name secret, Blake said, "It's her life. She should have her privacy until she chooses not to have her privacy, just as I got to choose and my husband got to choose."

Blake is currently promoting her latest film, The Age of Adaline, in which her character is immortal, and said that becoming a parent made her think about the idea of mortality. "She's trapped, because it's tragic to be young forever," she said of her character. "And also, having a child makes you realize that we pass on for a reason. You think, I have to go, because it makes room for you."

But while a working mum herself, the actress isn't keen on the the notion of being able to "have it all" - though she admitted "somehow I find a way to do it all".

She told the magazine: "Most of the things I do are all-consuming, but somehow I find a way to do it all.

"But it's dangerous to dilute that to a catchphrase." She added: "Having it all could be having a happy, healthy family, and you could be a mom who stays at home, and that is the most admirable thing you could do. Or it could be having a profession that you really believe in, and not having a family, and doing what fulfills you."

Blake shared this picture of herself with photographer Mario Testino in February

Discussing her website Preserve, the former Gossip Girl star described acting as a "for hire" business and as such, wanted a project offering more security.

"It taps into so many of my own passions, but it also is a business that I can control," she explained. "If I can be successful at this, I have security for my family and my babies. I'm in a profession, acting, where it's really for-hire - I offer a service that people hire out. I love it, but it's not something I can control."